I Dream of Beanie
Every year, Alice Springs (NT) goes psychedelic between the ears. Reds, greens, ochres and polka dots: the wool is utterly wild in the desert’s own Beanie Festival.
More than a gimmick, the beanie bash is a celebration of the traditional crafts among the local Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara women, as Alice tends to get real chilly in late June.
Pompoms? Footy logos? The bogan beanie is old hat compared to the kinky knitwear that’s lobbed in the last 8 winters – from Uluru, Darwin, Adelaide and Yokohama. The range is amazing – more than 3000 woollen wonders arrived in Alice in last year alone – sporting everything from Incan earflaps to emu feathers.
Prize categories tell you something of the festival’s spirit: Best Tea-Cosy, Most Stylish, Most Festive and the Mad Hatter’s Award. In 2005, for the hotly contested Most Sculptured Section, Oi-Ran Oiko Takahashi of Japan pipped Makutjara Witsula Kunmanara of the Ernabella Arts Collective. Congratulations to both knit-wits.
See their handiwork, and many other multi-coloured gob-smackers, from Rasta snoods to the unbelievable barramundi beanie, on http://www.beaniefest.org/2005roundup.htm.
Feeling inspired, you can clack your needles for June 2006 – or donate yarn for the Larapinta craft bees throughout the warmer months . Entry is free, with the emphasis on skill-sharing and knitting a world of different people together.